10 Top Forbes Power Celebrities and the Charities They Support

I recently came across the Forbes 2012 World’s Most Powerful Celebrity 100 list and it got me thinking of the quote from the famous French philosopher Voltaire “with great power comes great responsibility.” We expect those to whom much is given to give back and we often write about the nonprofit fundraising efforts of the famous here on the Miratel blog. We have covered this in lists like the 20 Celebrities Doing Good to Benefit Nonprofit Fundraising & Missions in 2011 Part 1 (and Part 2) as well as the 10 Most Charitable Celebrities from the 2012 Oscar Nominees to name a few. With the help of information on Look to the Stars I thought I’d take a look at the charities supported by those who hold the most power in Hollywood according to the Forbes list.

• 10) Steven Spielberg has founded many nonprofit organizations including the USC Shoah Foundation Institute, the Righteous Persons Foundation and Starbright which later merged with the Starlight Foundation forming Starlight Children’s Foundation. The Oscar winning director and executive producer of the NBC hit Smash also donated $750,000.00 each to the American Red Cross and the Bush Clinton Fund following hurricane Katrina. Other nonprofits Spielberg has supported includes Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Entertainment Industry Foundation, Film Foundation and Healthy Child Healthy World (RED).
• 9) Tom Cruise overcame dyslexia and became a founding Board Member for the Hollywood Education and Literacy Project that teaches kids how to read and succeed. Other charities the Rock of Ages star has supported includes Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes, Children’s Hospice & Palliative Care Coalition, Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Jackie Chan Charitable Foundation, Raising Malawi, Stockings With Care and UNICEF.
• 8) Katy Perry made this year’s list after the mega-hit Teenage Dream landed five #1 hit singles. She also has a documentary concert film titled Katy Perry: Part of Me coming out July 5th, 2012. In the past she has supported charities such as Generosity Water, GRAMMY Foundation, Habitat For Humanity, Keep-a-Breast, MusiCares, Music for Relief, Musicians on Call, Project Clean Water, Red Cross, Save The Music Foundation, Stand Up To Cancer, STOMP Out Bullying and United Service Organization.
• 7) Kim Kardashian is the mega-star of the reality world and she has been known to donate her clothes to raise funds for the Dream Foundation and also travelled to Africa in support of Russell Simmons Diamond Empowerment Fund. Other charities she has supported includes American Foundation for AIDS Research, Generation Rescue, Mattel Children’s Hospital, Nancy Davis Foundation for Multiple Sclerosis, Operation Once in a Lifetime, Skin Cancer Foundation, Soles4Souls, The Salvation Army, True Colors Fund and We Advance.
• 6) Britney Spears just completed a world tour and is the new X Factor judge. Britney also founded “the Britney Spears Foundation [which] offers children in long-term hospital care the opportunity to perform and express themselves.” Britney supports a number of children’s and other charities including Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes, Elevate Hope Foundation, Keep A Child Alive, Kids Wish Network, Luke Neuhedel Foundation, Music Rising, Promises Foundation, Red Cross, St. Bernard Project and United Way.
• 5) Lady Gaga has frequented our blog many times in the past with her involvement in the Grammy Auction, sitting for Tony Bennett to sketch, her support of Harvey Weinstein’s “Bully” Documentary and her just missing out on the 10 Top Celebrity Charitable Contributions Based on Publicity Value. The superstar pop singer has also “teamed up with M•A•C AIDS Fund’s VIVA Glam campaign [in the past and] raised over $160 million to fight against AIDS and HIV.” Earlier this year she launched the Born This Way Foundation to help empower youths. Other charities Mother Monster has supported includes Alzheimer’s Association, Born This Way Foundation, CLIC Sargent, It Gets Better Project, Lupus Foundation of America, Oxfam and Stand Up To Cancer.
• 4) Rihanna, the Grammy Award winning singer of hits like Umbrella and We Found Love, launched her Believe Foundation in 2006 to help terminally ill children. Rihanna has supported and performed to raise funds for various causes including Bear Necessities, Pediatric Cancer Foundation, City of Hope, Designers Against AIDS, DKMS, DoSomething.org, Feeding America, Kids Wish Network, Live Earth, GRAMMY Foundation, Mission Australia, MusiCares, Raising Malawi, Red Cross, Shriners Hospitals for Children, Stand Up To Cancer and UNICEF.
• 3) Justin Bieber…the Biebs…our Canadian treasure. The Stratford heartthrob who recently released his album Believe has been near the top of many giving lists. He has consistently supported Pencils of Promise and the Make-A-Wish Foundation by giving a portion of the proceeds from both his best selling fragrance Someday and his Christmas album Under the Mistletoe. Did you know tickets for his 2 Madison Square Garden’s concerts sold out in 30 seconds? 2 shows sold out in 30 seconds! No wonder he’s #3. Other causes he supports includes Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, City of Hope, Cure Duchenne, Food Bank For New York City, Give Back Hollywood Foundation, GRAMMY Foundation, It Gets Better Project, Jumpstart, Musicians on Call, Red Cross and his mentor Usher’s New Look Foundation.
• 2) Oprah Winfrey has been having a bit of a struggle with her OWN: Oprah Winfry Network, but her power, position and philanthropy is as solid as ever. The granddame of daytime talk, self-awareness and spiritual connectedness has donated millions of dollars to charity over the course of her career plus she has her own foundations The Angel Network and her Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. Other charities she has supported includes the Clinton Foundation, 46664, Born This Way Foundation, Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project, Elevate Hope Foundation, Free The Children, Heifer International, Lower East Side Girls Club, Mississippi Animal Rescue League, Mpilonhle, Peace Over Violence, Project Cuddle, Red Cross, Robert F Kennedy Memorial, Somaly Mam Foundation, V-Day and Women for Women International.
• 1) Jennifer Lopez has had quite the year with her career experiencing a resurgence with being a judge on the hit talent show American Idol, her divorce from Marc Anthony and her new album Love (and new boyfriend to go with it). Despite her success J.Lo has a history of giving back to charity as she was “one of the recipients of Love Our Children USA’s “Mothers Who Make A Difference” awards in 2009.” Charities Lopez has supported includes Amnesty International, Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes, Children’s Health Fund, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, City of Hope, Dizzy Feet Foundation, DKMS, GRAMMY Foundation, Love Our Children USA, March Of Dimes, MusiCares, Raising Malawi, Red Cross, The Saban Free Clinic and UNICEF.

Congrats to all the celebs for the success that landed them on this list and for paying it forward. Not only does their philanthropic work do great things for many people, but it also helps to shape their public persona, which can influence their fans making their efforts even more impactful.
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